Remote battery charging devices are commonplace in the trucking industry. For example, in some trucks there is a battery system for a tractor portion of the truck and a remote battery for a trailer portion of the truck. The remote battery in the trailer portion may be operative to control one or more functions of the trailer such as, for instance, a lift gate for loading and unloading cargo to the trailer. A lift gate may be an electronically powered and controlled apparatus that aids in loading and unloading the trailer. It is important that the lift gate have access to a sufficient and steady power supply in terms of the voltage and current needed for its operation. Insufficient power may lead to accidents and injury of those who operate the lift gate.
In order to maintain sufficient power in the remote battery, the remote battery may be coupled with a remote battery charger. The remote battery charger must receive power from an external source in order to have the capability to charge the remote battery. The source of this power is typically the battery system of the tractor portion of the truck, since the battery system in the tractor is capable of re-charging itself (e.g., using an alternator operably coupled to an engine in the tractor, or the like).
During operation, the remote battery charger accepts an input current and voltage from the tractor battery and converts it to an output current and voltage suitable for charging the remote battery. It is often necessary to convert the input current and voltage to the output current and voltage for proper charging to occur. Said differently, the current and voltage level may need to be changed for proper charging of the remote battery. Many factors may contribute to what constitutes proper current and voltage levels for charging the remote battery.
Some conventional remote battery chargers may be configured to monitor the internal temperature of the remote battery charger and vary charging voltage and current based on this internal temperature. However, the internal temperature of battery chargers is typically much higher than the batteries they are charging. As such, existing remote battery chargers may unnecessarily reduce the current delivered to the remote battery charger.
Additionally, conventional remote battery chargers may be configured to reduce charging voltage and current when, for example, a brake, brake light or an interior light in the tractor is activated. Although this can be useful in preventing the voltage at the rear of the trailer from becoming too low for other components, such as anti-lock braking systems, it may result in the automatic disconnect of current to the remote battery regardless of the voltage and current output from the remote battery charger. Said differently, even where the output of the remote battery charger is low, voltage and current to the remote battery may be disconnected automatically due to a break light or interior light in the tractor being activated, thus reducing the overall re-charge of the remote battery under these conditions.
Furthermore, conventional remote battery chargers typically utilize a fixed target voltage throughout charging. Using a single fixed target voltage during charging can over or under charge the remote battery depending on the ambient temperature. As such, the long-term battery life and charge acceptance of the remote battery may be reduced. Additionally, many installations of batteries for trailer lift gate applications utilize different battery chemistries. Conventional remote battery chargers may not take into account the correct battery chemistry necessary to maintain safe operating voltages during charging based on the types of batteries being charged.
Additionally, conventional remote battery chargers often require a separate controller that operates within the overall charging system. This separate controller typically determines if the tractor engine is running, measures the input voltage of the tractor battery and provides an output signal that controls the operation of the above described battery charger. This necessitates additional hardware and electrical connection lines between the tractor and trailer.
It is with respect to the above that the following improvements and contributions are described.